UK

2012

London, December 19, 2012--The Committee to Protect
Journalists is alarmed that two attacks against journalists in Northern Ireland
have taken place over the past week. On Friday, a pipe bomb was left at the
door of the home of freelance press photographer Mark Pearce. On Monday, Adrian
Rutherford, a reporter with the daily Belfast
Telegraph, was attacked by a gang while covering Loyalist protests in East
Belfast.

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New York, November 29, 2012--The Committee to Protect
Journalists is deeply concerned by recommendations to adopt government
regulation of the press resulting from the United Kingdom's Leveson inquiry
report issued today.

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Dear Prime Minister Cameron: As you begin your meetings with Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to review the Pakistan-U.K. Enhanced Strategic Dialogue, we would like to draw your attention to concerns regarding the protection of journalists in Pakistan. CPJ data show that the country has been ranked the deadliest in the world for journalists for two consecutive years. This year, Pakistan also placed 10th on CPJ's Impunity Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are regularly murdered and their killers go free.

Legislation for Internet security can quickly turn into a weapon against the free press. Cybercrime laws are intended to extend existing penal codes to the online world, but they can easily be broadened to criminalize standard journalistic practices. By Danny O'Brien

In the EU, some countries appear more immune than others to scrutiny and reproach. Anti-terror laws, political and economic concerns, and a lack of common standards all challenge the credibility of the EU's diplomacy. By Jean-Paul Marthoz

The News of the World phone-hacking scandal and subsequent public inquiry raised concerns that public interest journalism could suffer from efforts to curtail unethical practices through regulation. While investigating related police leaks, Scotland Yard invoked the Official Secrets Act to pressure a journalist to reveal sources for her coverage of the scandal. Authorities ultimately backed down from the unprecedented effort. Several journalists came under attack while covering mass riots in urban areas in August. Prime Minister David Cameron said news outlets must hand over raw footage of rioters and suggested the government restrict social media tools to curb street violence. The government drafted a defamation bill aimed at reforming the U.K.'s much-criticized libel laws. The measure had yet to go through parliament.

New York, February 3, 2012--The Committee to Protect
Journalists condemns the detention and harassment in Iran of relatives of BBC
Persian service staff who work outside the country, which is part of a
sustained campaign to intimidate journalists into not reporting critically on
Tehran's activities.